The invention relates generally to children""s ride-on vehicles, and more particularly to a children""s ride-on vehicle with a direction responsive mechanism.
Children""s ride-on vehicles, or ride-ons, are reduced-scale vehicles designed to be sat upon and ridden by children. Ride-on vehicles may include figures of characters that are familiar to children, such as storybook, fairytale, or cartoon characters. The figures enhance the ride experience for the child, and provide manufacturers the ability to market ride-on vehicles in conjunction with well-known characters.
Prior ride-on vehicles with figures suffer from the drawback that the figures, such as stickers or other static images mounted thereon, do not move or otherwise interact with the action of a child rider. For example, a company called The Little Tikes Company of Hudson, Ohio has made a product called the Pooh Rumbly Racer Car that is pushed by a parent or propelled by a child""s feet pushing against the ground. The product has three-dimensional figures fixed relative to the body of the vehicle so the figures do not move or otherwise respond to the child""s actions.
Little Tikes also makes a product called the Pooh Friend Ship Wagon that is a wagon that is pulled by a parent or other individual and includes free-spinning casters that are secured to the vehicle by mounts including a three-dimensional figure. Much like the wheel of a shopping cart, the caster wheel and the figure rotate freely about a vertical axis due to contact between the wheel and ground. This adds amusement to the child because the wheel and figure will rotate in complete circles with only minor changes in direction to the vehicle. However, the child riding in the wagon is not able to direct or otherwise control the movement of the figure, and the wagon requires a parent or other individual to pull the wagon.
It would be desirable to provide children with an interactive ride experience, by linking the movement of a figure on a ride-on vehicle with the action of a child riding the vehicle, to further enhance the ride experience for the child.
A children""s ride-on vehicle and associated rotation translation assembly are provided. The children""s ride-on vehicle includes a body having an outer surface and a seat. The vehicle also includes a plurality of wheels rotatably mounted to the body. The plurality of wheels includes at least one steerable wheel. The vehicle also includes a steering mechanism with a steering column and an associated steering handle, the steering column being rotatably coupled to the body and to the steerable wheel. The steering handle is configured to be actuated by a rider sitting on the seat to thereby cause the steerable wheel to turn. The vehicle further includes a direction responsive member extending from the outer surface of the body, the direction responsive member being coupled to the steering mechanism through a linkage assembly and configured to rotate in response to movement of the steering handle. The vehicle may also include a drive assembly and/or a sound producing assembly.
Many other features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description which follows and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which preferred embodiments incorporating the principles of this invention are disclosed as illustrative examples only.